CHARACTER INFORMATION

The first thing you have to understand about Yuri’s personality is that he’s always hiding his true motivations through evasion and deflecting. The more hilarious part about this, however, is that with enough time spent around him, these attempts only serve to make him more transparent and easily read. With that being said, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Yuri has multiple sides to his personality and that each are clearly defined yet strangely in sync with the others.

The major three are Yuri the Slacker, Yuri the Vigilante and Yuri the Self-Sacrificing Dolt.

We’ll start with Yuri the Slacker. As the title suggests, this is the easy-going, carefree Yuri that almost everyone is exposed to. This is also the cover for the other two sides, which means this is the way he’ll act nearly all the time. It would not be remiss of me to say that this is his most prevalent attitude and probably very close to his true persona but it would be more accurate to say this is more of a result than a cause in regards to his motivations. In this frame of mind, Yuri is simplistic, a realist and extremely grounded. He sees things simply, taking obstacles in stride and never lets them distract him from the true goal. It’s this attitude of his that keeps him optimistic and focused, which ultimately causes others around him to become like-minded. Because of his constant cheerful or uncaring manner, he can come off as irksome to many others but those who truly know him recognize the strong determination and good heart beneath, despite his mischievous tendencies.

Which brings us to Yuri the Self-Sacrificing Dolt. This title is also fairly self-explanatory in that Yuri has a massive martyr complex that he will never ever admit to. This is also the focal point of his motivations, though he never says as much in words. This side of Yuri peeks out from beneath his façade as a lazy, downtown bum occasionally and is almost always hidden again the minute someone pays attention. Any attempt to analyze, remark or compliment him on any of his actions as a result of this side are also deflected or evaded, painting him as modest (when it really counts) and a bit shy about his tendency to do good things. In fact, it’s this reserved nature that often causes him to come across as more of a dick than hero.

An example would be when the group witnessed a father, whose son had been taken by an evil magistrate, about to charge off into the wilderness to fight a notoriously powerful monster in order to earn the money to free his son. Rather than sensibly catch the man and try to talk him down, as most heroes would have done, Yuri tripped him and made him faceplant into stone and left the rest of the group to patch up his wounds and explain the reasoning.

There are other examples of course, such as allowing the credit for many of his accomplishments to fall on the shoulders of others as well as sacrificing his own sense of morals in order to save the lives of the innocent.

Which, conveniently, then brings us to Yuri the Vigilante. This side of Yuri is the darkest and rarely ever sees daylight. In fact, this side has only come out twice in game. (Three times, tops.) Also named appropriately, this is the side of Yuri where he enforces justice when the law fails to do so.

Twice, when two different high-ranking officials were found guilty of crimes against humanity, the Empire failed to make them pay for their crimes because of their influential power. In order to prevent a repeat of their actions and to protect the lives of those weaker and unable to fight back, Yuri decided to take things into his own ends and ended up killing both of them. (Or rather, killed one and watched the other sink into sand.) When Flynn called him out on his actions, Yuri explained that he had done it to save those who would have inevitably died in the future by the criminals’ hands. He also admitted that he realized he was sinking to their level and had become a criminal himself.

This side ties in heavily with his martyr self because Yuri claims to have taken up the duty of “dirtying his hands” in order to protect the innocent. He doesn’t concern himself with the fact that he might end up rotting in a cell for these murders, only that lives will be spared because of his actions. Thus, this side of Yuri is another result of his deep-rooted notions of justice and honor. He’s willing to take on all the hatred, the slander and the disgrace if it means someone else will make it out okay. It also means that anyone who abuses the weak for their own profit will earn no mercy for him. He’s already proven that he doesn’t care if he gets labeled a murderer, only that others with the same title get their due.

Weapon:

Name: Second Star

Form: A sword.

Upgrades:

Agility: How fast a Player can move and react. Higher Agility boosts act as a haste or speed+ effect, as though the world surrounding the Player has slowed down

Light: Causes the weapon to shine with a brilliant inner light. Both strong and weak against Dark, strong against dead characters.

Coup de Grace: Player has a 5-10% chance of defeating their opponent in one thrust. If Coup de Grace activates, it is classified as dark-type damage.

Amnesty: Offense increases gradually for every minute that has gone by in the current battle, up to the five minute mark.

Overlimit: A burst of energy allows a weapon to discharge one elemental attack. The element is selected at random.

Lost memories:

✧ The name of the guild he's in.✧ How his parents died.✧ What the bracelet on his wrist represents.✧ How he met Estelle.✧ The meaning of Dein Nomos.✧ That he and Flynn served under the same captain when they were knights.✧ How to walk down stairs.✧ How to use doors.✧ How to fold laundry.✧ How to make croquettes.

Sample:

Walking forward, Yuri can only feel a cold emptiness in his veins as he watches Cumore take that final step back and goes plunging into the sandpit below with a horrified shriek. In a way, he's grateful for the numbness that keeps him from feeling anything as he dirties his hands again, though the reprieve is bitter sweet. He knows that once this is all over and he's back at the inn watching Karol sprawl over his sheets, he'll feel differently. He'll feel consumed, burdened and heavy.

But for now? For now, he's icy cold and filled with disgust as he walks up to the edge of the dune and looks down at the knight who is slowly sinking into the darkness.

"I-I beg you! Spare my life!" Cumore shrieks, his eyes filled with pleading. For a brief moment, Yuri let himself consider the possibility of ending this now. Of turning back and taking the higher road and creating change without shedding blood, like Flynn would want. But it's only a brief moment, nothing more than an idle thought flickering through his brain, leaving as quickly as it came. There's no turning back for him anymore, not after Ragou.

Someone had to get their hands dirty.

Giving a mild, pointed glance at the coil of rope next to his feet, Yuri remained otherwise motionless, making absolutely no move to rescue the man. He wanted his point made clear, that there wasn't going to be any salvation for either of them at this point. And as he watched the realization come to Cumore's eyes, that he really was going to die here, the fallen knight reached up to him in a last ditch attempt.

And at that moment, the disgust at the back of Yuri's throat overwhelmed his detached apathy for this situation. "Tell me," he began, voice low and barely audible over the sound of falling sand, "how many times have you heard those very words?"

Cumore's hand falls and finally, finally he sinks away into the sand, his screams dying out as the earth swallows him up. Yuri wasn't certain how long he stood there in silence, staring at the spot where the knight had disappeared so as to burn the imagery into his mind.

Murder is a crime.

And he was very much a murderer. The thought didn't bother him or cause him grief or guilt, if anything it only filled him with grim determination. He was sinking to their level and getting caught up in their depravity, yes, but that was okay. He wasn't a hero, he didn't have to put on an act for anyone and pretend to be a good guy. That was Flynn's job, only he wasn't pretending. He was the good guy. The naive, model citizen that would make the real changes in the end and change the empire.